


Witchcraft

by jen131



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-01
Updated: 2015-03-01
Packaged: 2018-03-15 18:34:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3457487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jen131/pseuds/jen131
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daryl realizes he's under Carol's spell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Witchcraft

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for TheCarylDaily's fanfic/fanart challenge "Affection".

Feeling overwhelmed with the all too common fear of the unknown, he focused on what he knew.  She was alive.  They were both alive and they were together.  The group had worked as a unit to take down Terminus and had finally been reunited.  After the battle, they decided it would be a wise decision to remain there, at least for the night.  Everyone was mentally and physically exhausted.  It would be easier to see how things looked and spot any potential dangers in the morning once the sun came up.

 

They made camp in what Sasha determined to have once been an administrative building.  It had a decent sized main room filled with a few couches  and a couple of table and chair sets as well.  There was another large room off to the side of the main room.  It looked as though the people that resided here before them had the room set up for food, weapons, and medicine storage, most likely due to its central location.

 

There were a few smaller offices extending off to the sides.  From the look of them, someone had used them for bedrooms.  There were two ways into the building, and both could be monitored from one spot, putting everyone at ease.  Maybe they would be able to make this a permanent home, like the prison was.  

 

Watch shifts would be carried out two at a time, with Abraham and Maggie offering to take the first turn.  As the others worked on a game plan, Glenn took Carol to one of the rooms to get her settled, while Tyreese took Daryl aside.  Tyreese didn’t tell him the whole story, but he knew they had lost the girls and it was keeping Carol from sleeping.  The larger man explained her frequent night terrors and how he had been helping her through them.  Daryl thanked the man and went to check on Glenn and Carol.

 

Daryl entered the room and watched the scene in front of him.  Carol was laying on the bed crying while Glenn ran a washcloth across her skin, removing the dirt that covered her.  When Glenn saw Daryl, he looked to Carol as if he was checking to see if she was ok with him being there.  When she nodded her acceptance, Glenn placed the washcloth in the basin on the table and walked out of the room.

 

He sat down next to her on the bed and pulled her into his side, wrapping an arm around her tightly as they huddled together.  It was cold and damp, but sharing body heat would help and also keep her calm.  After everything they had been through he didn’t want her more than arms reach away from him.

 

He held her head close to his own as he thought about how much they had changed.  He thought about the events that were responsible for how much different they were now.  They had been through enough horror and tragedy to last a few lifetimes.

 

Daryl wasn’t sure how much time had passed as he sat there, gently running his fingers through her hair.  It was longer now, small curls framing her face.  She looked more at ease in this moment.  More —than he knew— she had felt since before the illness spread through the prison.  So many survived the sickness just to be lost at the hands of that asshole.

 

Nine lives?  By now, this woman had to be down to about five.  He thought about each of the close calls she had since they met at the quarry.  He thought that she was gone when she had gotten lost in the tombs.  He even paid her grave a visit, said a silent goodbye, and left a lone Cherokee rose behind for her.

 

Once again, he thought she was gone when he came back from a run and found out that Rick, the man he thought of as a brother, had just tossed her out like like a lamb to the slaughter.  There were so many things left unsaid between them.  He had found a jasper stone on that run and remained fixated on it for the long ride back to the prison.  He planned on making her a necklace with it when he returned from his run

 

One of Merle’s old girlfriends was Wiccan.  Whenever she stayed over, she would tell Daryl about herbs and stones while making breakfast.  She thought he was bored, but he quietly paid attention.  He always enjoyed learning something new.  Besides, maybe the things she taught him would come in handy one day.

 

She gave him a jasper from her collection once.  She explained to him that according to old legends, the stone was  the ‘supreme nurturer’ and protector stone.   It helps its wearer through tough times and brings tranquility.  Maybe it was true, maybe not.  Either way he figured it didn’t hurt to keep it close, which he did up until the beginning of all of this.

 

She shifted, but her steady breathing indicated she remained in her deep slumber. Now her head was resting in his lap, her face pressed against his stomach.  He admired her features. He dreamt of them each night they were apart.  His fingers caressing her face, connecting the freckles, tracing every scar.  He wished he could erase not only their appearance, but any lingering memory of how she had gotten them.

 

He thought of all of the things that he swore he would tell her when they were reunited.  He never gave up on her.  He knew deep down that he would see her again, one way or another.  It ate at him every day that he never really thanked her for being there for him when Merle died.  He didn’t take the time to tell her how much he appreciated her friendship and the way she helped him to become a better person.  Most importantly, she didn’t know how he really felt about her.

 

After a few hours passed, she woke up and they talked.  She explained what happened with Lizzie and Mika.  He was in utter disbelief to hear what almost happened to Lil Asskicker.  It was clear how the loss of not only one, but the deaths of all three of her girls had caused her immeasurable pain.  He was going to do what he could to help her through the loss of Lizzie and Mika, as he had done before with Sophia.  He reached for her hand and held it tightly.    

 

When she finished telling him about what happened with the girls, Daryl knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep.  He carried her into the main room and sat down on one of the couches.  It was partially his need to keep her protected that kept him from relaxing in the other room.  If something was going to happen, he wanted to be closer to his family.  He also wanted Rick to see how serious he was when he said she was staying or they both would leave.  Daryl promised her he wouldn’t leave her..

 

Her tears continued to fall as she cried herself to sleep in his arms.  He did what he could to comfort her.  He rubbed her arms, laced their fingers together, and continued to whisper reassuring words to her throughout the night.  He realized he had found a new witch now, and he was unconditionally under her spell.

 

Daryl noticed the others glancing at them from time to time, and normally would have shied away from any physical contact under their eyes, but he didn’t care now.  They could look all they wanted.  He was completely under her spell.  He would be happy to give her all of the public displays of affection that she wanted, so long as he never felt like she was lost again.


End file.
